Any information in the reclamation plan application which is considered by the applicant to be confidential, as provided in Article 9 of Chapter 4 of this title, shall be submitted under separate cover and shall be so marked by the Director. The proposed confidential information shall be accompanied by a statement citing the legal authority supporting the applicant's claim of confidentiality. The request for confidentiality shall be reviewed by the Director and either approved or denied.
The decision of the Director to reject or accept the claim of confidentiality shall be mailed and posted in accordance with Section 10-5.607 of this chapter. Any request for confidentiality approved by the Director shall become final within fifteen (15) days, unless appealed to the Commission, as provided in Article 11 of this chapter. The appellate hearing shall be conducted such that the information remains confidential until a decision is reached.
If the request is approved, then the confidential information shall be filed under separate cover. The contents of the confidential file shall be made available only to the Director and those persons authorized in writing by the operator and by the property owner. If the request is denied, the applicant may withdraw the information and include it with the application as a public document. Failure to submit any necessary information may result in an incomplete application. (§ 1, Ord. 1191, eff. September 5, 1996; as amended by Ord. 1518, eff. February 13, 2020)